Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-11-20
THE PANHANDLE.
Over the Fort Worth and Denver Road
20 the Top Of the Biggest state
In the UUi0ns
A Vast Domain Awaiting Settlement THE
s'sJsked Plains" and Its Fertility-Great
Railroads Now Penetrating the
Country
Meridian Citizen,

After spending two days and nights
with his comrades of the Mexican war,
at the reunion IN Fort Worth last week,
the editor of the Citizen made q flying
tour over the Fort Worth and Denver
Railroad through the Panhandle to the
end of the track, On the Canadian river.
This is one of the best constructed and
most efficiently managed railroads in
the state, and is destined at very early
day to be advanced to the front in the
grand procession of the material forces
now marshaling for 8 boom in Texas
development. A little over year ago
General Dodge, the financial manager of
the enterprise, and the directors resolved
to move on from Vernon to the state line
in Dallam county. Vernon is in Wilbar-
ger county, at the I63d mile post, and
was at tnat time Furnishing trading
point. Since then the road has been
pushed with great energy, and now rests
its rails on the abutment of the Canadian
river bridge, 397 miles from Fort Worth,
having leaped distance of 234
miles within the short period of
about one yesr. The bridge across the
Canadian, three miles above Tascosa, at
the mouth of Cheyenne creek, coming in
from the north, is now in building and
will be completed in week or two.
Grading forces cover the line to the state
line, about fifty miles beyond, to which
point the track will be laid by the middle
of January or earlier. Here it is to be
met by the Denver, Texas and Fort
Worth Railroad, now running from Den
yer to Trinidad, and being rapidly graded
from the city across the northwest
corner of New Mexico to the state
line-a distance of about 125 miles.
Track laying will follow the grading with
all possible energy from Trinidad south
ward, and when the Fort Worth and Den
yer reaches the end Of its chartered limits
at the state line, the force will be trans
| ferred to the Denver, Texas and Fort
Worth division, and track laying will be
continued at both ends. It is expected
and intended that the two ends shall meet
by April l, and the line open for travel and
traffic certainly by the lst of May next.
This opens the direct channel of commerce
between the southwest and the north
west, and links the great states of Texas
and Colorado with steel ligstures. The
distance from Fort Worth to the state
line is $50 miles, and from the state line
to Denver via Trinidad, Pueblo and Colo
rsdo Springs, $50 miles. The value of
this great highway to Texas and Colorado
cannot be Observation-Disclosures it stag
gers the mind to look into the future and
attempt approximate measurement of
the commercial, industrial, social and po-
litical results that are reasonably assured
by the great achievement.
THE PANHANDLE.
The tourist sees much of this undevel-
-, ~
east to the northwest corner through its
very center. The road traverses Wichita,
Wilbarger, Hardeman, Childress, Col
iingsworth, Donley, Armstrong, Carson,
Potter, Oldham, Hartly and DaIlam coun-
ties, crossing the Big Wichita river, Pease
river, the Salt Fork and Prairie Dog
Fork Of the Red River, and Canadian
river, besides numerous creeks that
rarely cease to flow. It also crosses
the Llano Estacado, or much misrepre-
sented "Staked Plains" 1t is not pre-
tended that this portion of the Panhandle
is any better for agriculture or grazing
purposes than the vast areas north and
south of the counties named. On the
contrary, Ii is claimed to be only q fair
sample, so to speak, Of the whole of the
tWenty-siX counties comprising the Pan
Hanule pIOpSEs dnu euASS VI AOur tloIs VI
counties south of the Chil6ress county
tier; and viewing it as such it is safe
to pronounce it the garden spot of
Texas. Those who have written so-called
histories of this great state, and the
hundreds Of persons who have described
the Panhandle, and especially the Staked
Plains, from self-interest standpoint,
have failed to tell what they knew, or
knew not what they told. Their stories
have been misleading, whether purposely
false or ignorantly misstated. Just how
far the stockmen, who have been inter-
ested in keeping all outsiders in
ignorance Of the real facts, are re
sponsible for the perpetuation of the